The Frost Trilogy, Book Two: Age of the Inferno
by WinterFrost15
Summary: Jack's power is growing, and with it, his sister's trust in him. At last, things finally seem hopeful. It isn't until Jack starts hearing voices in his mind, urging him to do bad things, that he begins to realize more fully the dark forces which are at work, yearning for ultimate control. Can Jack and his loved ones hope to win against such ancient evil? We'll see... (Chapter 1 up)
1. Prologue: Fears and Darkness

**Prologue**

**Fears and Darkness**

_June_

_Saturday_

_3:25 pm_

Far down south from the North Pole, in a small town located in the state of Minnesota, Laura Miller paced about the kitchen of her home, anxious and worried. The cause for her behavior was her son, Charlie - she had not seen him in what felt like a very long time. She tried to dispel her concern by reasoning that Charlie was simply enjoying some extra time with his biological father (and her ex-husband) Scott Calvin. She tried to imagine that Scott and Charlie were simply taking the time to catch up and bond up at the North Pole, where Scott lived and worked as the one and only Santa Claus. Charlie rarely got to see Scott, unless it was on a holiday or during the summer, which was the case this time.

The particular reason for Charlie going up to the Pole had been, primarily, because of serious business. Scott had sent along a letter explaining that Charlie was to attend a Council of Legendary Figures meeting, whatever that entailed. Scott had also called and talked to Charlie, Laura, and Charlie's step-father Neil personally, asking if Charlie could stay a whole week in order for them to talk about everything "silly and solemn," as he had put it. Laura had been worried at first, uncertain what the solemn talk and serious meeting meant. In the end, she had felt everything would be fine; that Charlie would come home in a week, happy and healthy, and things would go on as they had.

But Charlie hadn't come home yet. He hadn't been home for a nearly two weeks.

Laura bit her bottom lip, her pacing coming to a halt as she looked over at the phone again. Any minute now, she thought, it would ring and Charlie would be on the line, ready to explain everything. She continued to stare at the white worn, old-fashioned phone cradled in its receiver for many minutes, until she finally gave up and went back to pacing.

Laura grew hungry after awhile, so she went into the dining room and picked an apple from the basket that lay in the center of the table. She bit into it with a loud crunch, which startled the fluffy, almost monstrous mass of fur that was the cat, Jasper, lounging on the table's polished surface. Jasper was a new member of the household, a stray she and Lucy had found curled up under a bush just outside their house. He'd had no collar, and when they asked around no one wanted him or sought to claim him. So, despite Neil's initial objections, they had kept the friendly cat, which they later discovered to be of the Chantilly-Tiffany crossbreed, and had grown attached to him. Even Neil had developed a fondness for the furry creature.

"Life is so easy for you, isn't it?" Laura cooed, stroking Jasper behind the ears. "You get to lay around and relax and not worry about anything all day. You're a lucky kitty."

Jasper purred in response, rubbing against Laura's outstretched hand. She smiled.

"It's a good thing you're not human," she said. "Humans have all the trouble, it seems. We have things to worry about."

Jasper continued to purr. Sighing, Laura left the dining room, munching on her snack as she found a chair in the kitchen to sit down on. She knew she shouldn't be so worried about Charlie; after all, he didn't get to see Scott very often, so him staying up north for a few extra days should've been understandable. Perhaps it was the feeling of lingering dread in her stomach that gave her pause, or the fears which had awoken her just a couple days after Charlie's departure. At the time she had been scared, sensing that something terrible had happened to her son. Afterwards, when Neil had sat her down and went through his psychological "cool-down" techniques, she had felt. . .better. In control of her emotions. Free of worry.

Now that worry was returning. What if something _had_ happened to Charlie? It was strange that neither Scott nor Charlie himself had called to tell Laura and Neil about staying up north longer; she thought that that would've been their first priority if the plan had changed. So, if what Laura believed was true, that Scott and Charlie would've told her about any changes, then something was obviously wrong. Hence why they had not contacted her.

The sound of the front door opening and closing alerted Laura that Neil and Lucy had returned with groceries, even before Lucy's shouted greeting of, "We're home, Mom!" met her ears. Standing up from her chair, Laura walked over to assist the two, for they had just now walked into the kitchen with armloads of plastic bags.

"I got it, Laura," Neil insisted, as Laura put down her apple and tried to relieve him of a few tricky bags which were threatening to fall from his grasp.

Laura let Neil be as he hefted his armload onto the kitchen island. Lucy, her own arms less weighted down with bags, easily placed each one onto the island as well, and began to pull out their contents. Laura then delved into the grocery party along with Lucy and Neil, removing items and passing some of them along to be placed in the refrigerator.

"I remembered to get your lipstick," Neil commented, handing it to her. "Revlon, fire and ice shade, right?"

"Yes, thank you, Neil," Laura replied, checking the seal to make sure it was not broken. "Did you also remember to get food for Jasper?"

In response Neil held up a can of Friskies cat food, then another. "I got four total," he said. "I wanted to make sure we had enough. I also found a math workbook for Lucy, since you were asking about it yesterday."

Neil put down the two cans he was holding and reached into another bag, withdrawing a thick volume; it looked to be maybe about a hundred pages or more. The title on the front said _Let's Do Some Math!_ in big, curly letters. Below it, it proclaimed: _A Fun, Challenging Workbook for Grades 4 to 5._

"Lucy and I looked through it at the store, and we both thought it would be great with helping her catch up on fourth grade math, while also preparing her for what's coming in fifth," Neil explained.

"That's great," Laura smiled. "Lucy, honey, why don't you go to your room and try to work on some of those problems now? Your father and I need to have a private word for a moment."

"Okay," Lucy said, a bit confused as she took her math book from Neil and walked out of the kitchen. Once she had disappeared up the stairs, Neil turned and looked at Laura, feeling somewhat puzzled himself.

"Is something wrong, Laura?" he asked gently, when Laura remained silent.

Laura sighed. Did Neil understand her worries? Did he even realize what she was worried _about_ right now? She hoped so, on both accounts.

"Neil," she began. "I know you said it was silly to feel concerned, that everything was fine with Charlie. . .but I still feel anxious. I'm sorry, I just can't deny it. It keeps tugging and tugging at me, and. . .well. . .I can't stand it anymore. I have to call Scott and find out what's wrong."

Neil sighed, but he offered Laura a warm, genuine smile. "I know how you feel, Laura," he said. "Honestly. Truth be told, I'm beginning to feel less confident of things myself. It _has_ been several days more than anticipated since Charlie's been gone. . ."

"Oh God," Laura moaned. She cupped her face in her hands despairingly, her worst fears seeming to be confirmed by Neil's own insecurity. "I knew it, I just _knew_ it! Something terrible _has_ happened to Charlie."

"No, no, I didn't mean to say it like that!" Neil insisted, his eyes growing wide in mild panic. He hurried over to Laura and gripped her arms comfortingly. "I'm sorry that I made you feel so discouraged. It's just. . .I'm getting worried, too. So maybe we _should_ call Scott. It would ease both our consciences' to know he and Charlie are alright up there."

Laura, lowering her arms, nodded. She closed her eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, then offered Neil a small smile. "Do you want to do the honors, or shall I?" she asked.

"Well, I think it would be best if you did," Neil said, in his calm psychiatrist voice. He took a breath as if he were about to say something else, then stopped, closing his mouth again. He then contented to just smiling at his wife.

Laura gave a worried look in Neil's direction as she slowly walked over to pick up the phone. Then, turning back, she grabbed the phone and focused on punching in Scott's cell number. She put the phone up to her ear and listened to it ring - once, twice. On the third ring a voice that was surprisingly _not_ Scott's answered.

"Nurse Rose speaking, may I be of assistance?" the decidedly _female_ voice asked politely.

"Um. . .yes," Laura said uncertainly. She didn't know what to say to this stranger, and frankly, she was also caught off guard. "I, uh, would like to talk to Scott Calvin, please, if he's available."

"He's a bit preoccupied at the moment, ma'am," Nurse Rose replied. There was a slight hesitancy in her tone as she went on. "He's had an accident. . ."

"Accident?" Laura repeated in bewilderment. "What kind of accident? Is he alright?"

Neil, tensing with a mixture of bewilderment and panic, edged closer to her in order to listen in on the conversation on the other end. Laura unconsciously turned the phone towards Neil, for him to better follow what was going on.

"Yes, ma'am, he should be fine," Nurse Rose assured her. "There was a kind of struggle, you see. Santa - or rather, Scott - was trying to keep a patient here at the Elfirmiry from hurting himself, as well as another patient. Things turned ugly, and by the end of it Scott had a back injury."

"Oh, my God, that's. . .that's terrible." Laura put a hand to her head, for a painful throbbing had started up there. This was just what she needed - worrying about both Charlie's _and_ Scott's well-being. "Are you sure Scott's going to be alright? How bad is his injury?"

"It's mostly some rather painful bruises to his lower back area," Nurse Rose explained. "Nothing life-threatening, ma'am. His spine did get a pretty nasty jolt, though. My superior, Dr. Hismus, prescribed Scott bed-rest while his bruises are healing. As I said, ma'am, Scott should be fine. Given a few days he should be able to work again."

Laura closed her eyes, feeling horrible despite the nurse's assurances that Scott was hurt but still okay, for the most part. She also felt unnerved that her instincts had been at least partially right - something bad _had_ happened.

_"Who is that, Rose?"_ Laura suddenly heard a distant voice ask in the background, a voice that sounded like Scott's this time.

"One minute sir, let me ask," the nurse said, addressing him. The nurse then asked Laura, "Ma'am, could I please have your name?"

"Laura Miller," Laura answered. "Scott's ex-wife."

Nurse Rose related this to Scott, who let a merry laugh. _"Would you mind handing me the phone, Rose? I'd like to talk to her," _he said, still sounding distant.

"But sir, you're still not well," the nurse insisted. Her voice become a bit softer, as if she were holding the phone away from her mouth. "After what happened I'm surprised you didn't-"

_"Rose, please,"_ Scott interrupted gently. _"Laura is family, and being Santa doesn't exactly give me time to spend with my family as much as I'd like. So come on, just let me talk to her for a few minutes."_

Nurse Rose gave an audible sigh, and seemed to relent, for the next moment Scott was greeting Laura cheerfully. "Hey, Laura, how's it goin'?" he asked.

Laura couldn't tell from his tone whether or not he knew what she and the nurse had been talking about, though he probably had, and was just trying to make it sound as though nothing were wrong. "I'm. . .fine," she replied. "Are you alright, Scott? How does your back feel?"

"Pretty sore," he said ruefully. "The doctor up here says I should be out by Tuesday. They have to check to make sure everything heals properly, you know. They also have to re-check to see if my spine is cracked anywhere. So they're just being cautious, like any good hospital should. Even for an elvin hospital, they know how to get the job done the right way."

"Well, I'm glad you're going to be alright," Laura sighed. "Though, not to be rude, this isn't the reason I called you."

Scott chuckled. "It's not rude at all. You wouldn't have known about anything regarding my back before calling me. Anyway, why _did_ you call? Something wrong down there? Neil isn't wanting to give me a long, boring speech about the effects of long-distance relationships between families, is he?"

"Ha, ha, very funny, Scott," Neil piped up sarcastically.

"Oh, sorry," Scott apologized, his own sarcasm masked fairly well, enough for it to seem only merely implied. "Didn't realize you were listening in, Neil. How are ya'?"

"Fine, Scott," Neil sighed, exchanging a sad grimace with Laura. Things had always been awkward with him and Scott, and this time was no exception.

"Anyway, Laura, what's the low down?" Scott pressed, reminding her of what she was going to ask.

"Well," Laura began, then paused. What would Scott think of her concerns? He might laugh lightheartedly, tell her everything was alright and that Charlie was simply having fun up at the North Pole with him, and was coming home soon, albeit a little later than expected. Her fears would simply be due to her natural maternal instincts, missing her child; nothing more. She would feel silly, maybe even stupid, for worrying so much.

So instead of expressing her fears outright, Laura settled on saying, "I was just wondering. . .how Charlie was doing. Is he behaving himself, and having fun?"

There was a little hesitancy to Scott's reply, which made Laura's heartbeat quicken with dread. "He's fine," Scott said, though his tone seemed caught off guard, and almost reluctant in quality. "He, um, got into a bit of a mess, but he's out of it and now he's just peachy. Having a blast, this kid is."

"What kind of a mess?" This didn't sound good at all. Laura still remembered when Charlie had gotten into trouble with his secondary school's principal, Carol Newman, who was now Scott's wife. She had been worried then about Charlie getting in trouble, and she was becoming even more worried now. She felt Scott was keeping something from her, but what? What was he hiding, and why was he hiding it in the first place?

"Oh, he just, uh, wandered off around the Pole for several hours," Scott told her quickly. "None of us could find him. But he's alright now. I gave him a proper scolding. You would've been proud of me though, Neil. I became a professional psychologist for an entire span of twenty minutes."

"That's _psychiatrist_ Scott," Neil corrected, a bit snappishly. "I'm a _psychiatrist."_ He wasn't really feeling snippy and anxious because of Scott, but because of what he had said about Charlie. His own worries had grown, and he wasn't entirely convinced - like Laura - that Scott was telling them everything.

"Yeah, whatever," Scott said, forcing a laugh. "Well, I kinda have to go now, guys. My back is killing me again, and Nurse Rose here is try to wrestle my own cell phone out of my hands. Call back in a day or two if you have any questions about me and Charlie, okay? I wouldn't arrange to come up here right now though, if you had any plans on visiting. Things are hectic. . .and I know Charlie has stayed at the Pole for several days more than you thought, which has probably been hectic for you, too. I'm afraid he's gonna have to stay for another week, though. Maybe two. I'll explain later when I have the strength and time, but please, just trust me. Things are just. . .a bit crazy. I don't want to put Charlie in harm's way by having him leave. Love you guys, hope we can talk again soon. Bye."

"Wait!" Laura cried, but Scott had already hung up. Horrified, she lowered the phone from her ear and stared at Neil, who looked equally shocked by the turn of events.

"We. . .We can't just let Charlie stay up there for another week or more!" Laura spluttered. "I mean we could, but it's so sudden. And Scott. . .well, he was acting weird, and wouldn't even explain himself. Neil, what's going on at the North Pole to make him act like this? Why is Scott keeping Charlie up there?"

Neil sighed again, though the sound was one filled with sorrow this time. "I wish I knew, sweetheart," he said. He smiled solemnly, and wrapped his arms around Laura in a gentle, soothing hug.

Laura appreciated it greatly, because a strange chill was coming over her just now, a chill that seemed to hint at something dark befalling those she loved.

"I wish I knew, too," she sighed, holding Neil tightly.

* * *

><p><strong>Hello again, everyone! Welcome to the prologue of book two in my Santa Clause trilogy, emAge of the Infernoem! After the response _Frost and Fire_ got I had an extra, feel-good boost which helped me get this next story going. Thanks go to all who supported me in my efforts to write and complete the first story! I'm glad you all seemed to enjoy reading it. :)**

**So anyway, here we are! A grim introduction to get your minds wondering. I will not update this story for awhile, since I have other projects that I want to work on, but consider this a little teaser while I work on other stories, as well as work on slowly writing the next chapters for this one. I'd love to know what you think of Book Two so far, and if you have suggestions for this while it is still in the general planning/figuring out stage, feel free to leave them in your review!**

**Thank you, and I hope you enjoy _Age of the Inferno!_ Til next time! :3**


	2. Chapter One: Upheaval

**Chapter One **

**Upheaval**

_Monday_

_1:01 pm_

Sandman was exhausted.

This wasn't like the brief, pleasant spells of drowsiness that occasionally pulled at his mind, as gentle as waves on a still pool. No, _this, _this utter weariness, was beyond those spells, and more fierce in its intensity. One might say that it was even brutal.

This was a weariness that permeated his entire being, eating away at both his mind and soul like a shadowy predator. What was the cause for this deterioration of the spirit, Sandy wondered? What was the reason for this slow, relentless spiral into weary madness?

Perhaps, it was the burden of war; the burden of knowing it was inevitable, that it would equally affect both the magical and the mortal worlds in such terrible ways. Perhaps this exhaustion, so all-encompassing and absolute in its influence, was a sign of early defeat - a sign that he, Sandman, was not preapred for the storm to come. He had not, after all, fought in that way since the war of Crystal Springs, when Pyros Frost had tried to take control of all magic and all beings of myth, fairytale and legend. Then, Sandman had not had a choice. . .and now, he still did not have one.

That was the reason for his madness, Sandy decided. It was the stress of having to deal with the prospect of war, and not being able to do anything to prevent it from eventually happening.

Now he sat at the long, oak wood meeting table that served as the place for the Council of Legendary Figures' discussions, pondering over all of these troubling thoughts in a detached, distant sort of way. The oak table was located in the spacious Timberwood Hall, which itself was situated in the castle of Kris Kringle, the third Santa Claus, who had taken on the red suit after the retirement of the second Claus, Nicholas St. North.

Sandman's head was currently resting on the table's polished surface, and his arms were acting as a rather comfortable pillow. It was a position he had assumed many times before, but never until now had it signified his utter lack of strength and motivation. Not even Mother Nature's gavel, which had often succeeded in pulling him away from sleep, could rouse his soul from this draining stupor he found himself in.

"Father. . .Father wake up!" the young man seated beside Sandman insisted softly, prodding at the Legend's arm with a tentative but determined index finger. This young man, as it happened, was Sandy's son Xander. He was also Sandy's Legate, which had many important responsibilities, such as looking out for the well-being of their particular Legendary Figure if and when they fell ill.

Sandy mumbled drowsily at Xander's insistent poking, but did not awaken fully. Xander eased his efforts slightly, as he realized that his father simply was not going to be dragged out of sleep, and needed time to rest. He had surprisingly not slept a wink the whole time they had been up at the Pole, which was unusual for Sandy, seeing as he almost always fell asleep at Council meetings.

This time Sandy had really made the effort to stay awake and be a firm presence in the growing chaos, which Xander found admirable, and also a tad dangerous. A sleepless Sandman was never a good thing - without sleep, beings like Xander and his father were at risk at becoming Sand Shades. That is to say, these Shades were dream keepers corrupted by the horrible creatures known as Boogies. Weakened minds, particularly those like Xan's and Sandy's which relied on psychokinetic energy generated by the massive web of sorts that connected all magic, would therefore be very susceptible to another, wicked influence.

Which was why Xander was worried that his father had taken too much of a beating, both mentally and physically; worried that his father hadn't gotten enough sleep and was going to pay dearly for it, if things went on the way they did.

At last giving up his efforts, Xander sighed again. It was obvious that his father was not going to be participating in this meeting, so the Legate smiled back at Mother Nature with as much calm as he could manage, and said, "I don't think my father will be joining us in this discussion right now."

Mother Nature nodded, the gesture a slow, sad one. She had hoped to rouse Sandy and see if any new developments had come about, at the North Pole or otherwise. She had fruitlessly tried using her gavel to wake up the sleepy Legend, but that also had not worked. That was when she had asked Xander to stir his father. But this also had failed, and now Mother Nature couldn't help but roll her eyes heavenward and pray to the gods that things wouldn't get worse.

Mother Nature had originally called this small meeting in order to plan what to do next, as well as gather more information about the darkness which hung over their heads. And by small, the meeting was indeed very, _very_ small. Only Mother Nature, Sandman, Xander, Tooth, Faunin, and Night - one of Father Time's Legates - were present.

Mother Nature had of course called upon the others - Santa, Jack, Jacqueline, Bernard, and so on - but none of them had yet shown up. She almost wished she had called for a Coalesce - a joining of the Council of Legendary Figures and Crystal Spring's main governing body, the Assembly. At least it would have assured the earth woman that the forces of good were not lacking in support, and that there were more magical beings with whom to converse with and get a more detailed idea of what was happening in the various realms of the magical world.

Now it was beginning to feel rather odd not to hear Easter Bunny and Cupid bickering at each other, or have Jack egg them on, while also adding his own smart comments, and Scott begging him to stop as Tooth laughed hysterically at the whole situation. Gone also was Father Time, an important figure of the Council as well as a dear friend. He had been affected by the strange energies of a Time Storm, which had for but a few moments come upon the Pole and wrecked its damage. Such damage had been dealt to the physical aspect of the Pole, as well as the emotional aspect of the people who had witnessed the horrible event.

While it was not much comfort, Father Time was now residing in Rosehaven, a place where magical beings went they died or decided to retire. Since Father Time had died, his spirit was less free to roam the sprawling landscape of Rosehaven as some were.

Also not a comfort was the fact that they had no way of reaching Father Time and calling upon his help with this war, if it could be called that at this stage. Cheri, the Witch of Darkness, was in charge of protecting the spirits of Rosehaven. As such, no one could leave, and no one could enter, unless she willed it. . .which was a _very_ rare occurrence that only happened if she was bargained with or seduced (this latter was also quite rare, given that Cheri had quite the temper if one brought out her bad side).

Without Father Time's unique knowledge, the light fighting against the darkness seemed a bit duller, less fierce. Of course, his Legates Night and Day were also very knowledge for their age. They had experience with Time. There was simply the problem of knowing if this experience was enough. They were still teenagers, after all, with admittedly still much to learn. Their mother Horatia, from what Mother Nature had heard, was doing the best she could to teach Night and Day what she felt would help them ease more comfortably into their father's position.

Mother Nature cast a pitying look upon the lone figure of Night seated to her right, wondering what anxieties must be going through his mind. His sister, Day, was back at the North Pole, doing whatever possible to keep everyone calm and cheerful. Mother Nature knew that Night was probably missing the company of his sister, despite their radical differences in personality, which occasionally clashed with one another.

Day was often a very energetic, loud, and optimistic young lady, and as such she was the perfect candidate to encourage and comfort others, especially in this dark time. She was also smart and radiant, and her energy and spirit seemed to have no boundaries. Night, on the other hand, was moody, grim, and quiet. He spoke in a deep undertone of sorts, so that it was difficult to hear him at times. Even though he seemed to be his sister's opposite, he was helpful in his own ways. He was surprisingly calm and level-headed in difficult situations, and had a lot of patience. He was also very intelligent like his sister, and logical, thinking through causes and effects very carefully and deciding what options one had and which would be the most effective.

Right now, Night was probably considering how to make the most of this current situation - that is, having to convene with so few people for an important discussion. Mother Nature sighed in sympathy, for she was pondering over the exact same thing.

"Alright, then," she finally said, gathering her thoughts together and remembering that Sandman was asleep, and was going to stay that way. "Thank you for at least trying to rouse your father, Xander. Now, onto you now, Tooth Fairy. What news, if any, do you have to share with us?"

Tooth straightened up, the usual chipper attitude he had gone, replaced by a serious manner which almost felt odd and uncomfortable, even to the other magical beings in the rather empty hall.

"Well, there's not much to tell, Mother Nature," Tooth admitted. "My family and I have noticed little going on in Crystal Springs that might indicate that the darkness is growing, and so far nothing else drastic has occured at the Pole other than the rumblings from the Deliquesce. My son Miles has said the ice is still melting gradually, and there's no sign of stopping it. Without the proper person to permanently fix it, of course."

Seeming to be satisfied with at least some answer, Mother Nature nodded, and turned her attention to Faunin. "Would you like to add anything to Tooth's report, Faunin?" she asked.

The half-man, half-goat husband of Mother Nature's daughter Autumn straightened up, shifting his hooves anxiously. He was a striking figure, with light, curly brown hair and small horns poking out from the myriad twisted strands. He wore a simple ensemble of a white collared shirt, dark brown trench coat, and a long red scarf.

Faunin's deep blue eyes were troubled as he steepled his hands under his chin and looked down at the table. His expression was one of concern and weariness, but also a hint of anger. . .even hatred.

"As Tooth Fairy already explained, nothing drastic has occurred at the North Pole or in Crystal Springs since the Deliquesce and other matters have come about," the goat man said slowly, every word carefully measured. "At least, nothing drastic has happened that he or any of you are yet aware of."

Everyone in the room perked up at this strange comment, each person (sans Sandman) giving Faunin confused but equally concerned looks.

"What do you mean?" Xander asked, after silence had reigned over the small group for several unsettling moments.

"I am the son of the guardian of all animals," Faunin replied, again in a slow, deliberate manner, as if being careful with his words. "As such, I have a deep love for all creatures great and small. I have my own haven for animals where Autumn and myself live. We tend to the many creatures which come to us for help, and who are seeking a safe home where they will not be viciously slaughtered or abused. I am telling you all this because some of these unfortunate animals, who have been victims of violence and neglect, have gone missing."

The room erupted with surprise, and despite there being so few in number, the group's voices echoed around the hall and made it seem as though the whole room were filled with perhaps a hundred Legendaries and their Legates.

"How long has this been going on?" Mother Nature demanded, once her gavel had managed to instill an uneasy sense of peace again.

"Not long, yet long enough," Faunin answered. He had lowered his hands at this point, and as Mother Nature watched one of those hands, slightly covered with fur, clenched furiously in front of him.

"What monster would kidnap poor, defenseless rabbits and birds?" the goat man growled.

"The same kind of monster, or _monsters_ even, who would indirectly call a war upon us," Xander answered. "If the Darkness has anything to do with your missing animals, that is. If it does, then we should stop to consider if other disappearances have occurred."

No one responded to that for a moment, still thinking of what a few missing animals might actually imply, if anything, and also pondering the truth behind Xander's words.

"You're right, Xander. . .the animals aren't the only ones to go missing," Tooth suddenly said, his gaze looking up and sweeping over the group. "Over a quarter of the teeth stored in the Crown Vaults have also vanished. I didn't mention it sooner because I didn't think it was relevant, but now. . .well, now I don't know."

Again, the small group burst out with shock. The Crown Vaults, managed by Tooth, his children, and his wife Toothiana (sometimes called Ana for short), was a vast chamber in which the teeth of all the children in the world were kept. Ana's tiny, teeth-collecting faeries tended to organizing and arranging the millions of ornate golden tubes in which every individual child's baby teeth were stored. These same faeries occasionally helped Tooth and Ana on deliveries, or even collected the teeth and slipped the coins under the pillows, being so small and quick like hummingbirds that they could sneak in and out of a child's room effortlessly.

But if some of those collected teeth had gone missing, just as some of Faunin's animals had, then there had to be some sort of reason or connection behind it. After what had happened so far to suggest a Dark presence over the magical world, Mother Nature was beginning to realize that perhaps matters were becoming far more unclear and insidious.

She was about to ask the rest of the group if there had been other disappearances when Timberwood Hall suddenly exploded with noise. The earth woman turned her attention across the long table to the wooden double doors several feet away. These doors were hundreds of feet high, but that didn't seem to stop the flood of magical beings which were now spilling into the hall of Kris Kringle's castle.

All of the beings were either Legendaries, Legates, or the family members of said individuals. Blossom, Easter's daughter, hopped into view, along with her mother Eleanor. There was Miles and Cathy, who immediately rushed forward to sit beside their father. Then there was Cupid, his wife Amadora, and their niece Aphrodite; and in strolled three of the four Season Sisters - Spring, Summer, and Autumn, with their respective children, husbands, and grandchildren. All of them took seats at the table, which magically accommodated itself by growing longer and providing more chairs.

"Order, order!" Mother Nature cried over the deafening commotion. "Settle down, please!"

The room instantly became silent, which unsettled Mother Nature so much that her heart fluttered a little, and she had to blink to assure herself that this was real. She hadn't expected everyone to be so. . _.respectful_. And civilized. Then again, this _was_ war they were dealing with. There was no time for fooling around now.

"Thank you," Mother Nature sighed, her motions shaky as she slowly put her gavel back down upon the table. "Now that we seem to have everyone here-"

"Everyone's _not_ here!" Blossom interrupted, her green eyes filled with tears and her ears flattened against her head in distress. "My daddy is gone!"

A bewildered wave of chatter came over the now much larger group of beings.

"That's not all!" Jack Skellington shouted over the noise. "My daughter Luna is also missing! _And _my father Halloween has had a spell cast over his town!"

"Yes, everything is dull and gray and strange!" Halloween confirmed, in his strange, echoing voice that sounded as though two people - one with a low tone and the other with a high one - were speaking at once. "The monsters of Halloweentown are not even monsters anymore! They are boring, disturbing, black and white figures, with no variation or color or grotesqueness to them at all. It's as if someone has sucked their very essence away, leaving them. . . lifeless."

"Everything is chaos, Mother," Spring called over the near screaming volume of the other magical beings. "People are disappearing left and right, strange things have happened. . .and now everyone is freaking out! Autumn and I tried calming some of them down before we came here, but it was no use!"

It was at that moment that the doors leading into the hall opened again, admitting the figures of Jack and Jacqueline Frost, Elle Connelly, Bernard, and Scott Calvin. Jack was gripping the handles of Scott's wheelchair, while Jacqueline held open the door, letting her brother and Scott pass through. Jack flashed a grateful smile at his sister, who returned it whole-heartedly.

Jacqueline then smiled at her best friend Elle as she and her fiancee Bernard also stepped into the room. The wintry sprite and her brother had met up with the two elves after they had been informed by Mother Nature of the meeting which was to take place today. Neither Jacqueline nor Jack had seen Elle and Bernard for quite some time, so they had been surprised when they had seen the Head Elves in Elfsburg Square, holding hands and laughing.

They hadn't really talked much, just said hello and asked how everyone was doing. Jack had then informed the elves of the meeting at Kris Kringle Castle, which Mother Nature had insisted was of the utmost importance to attend. Elle had then replied that she and Bernard had a lot of catching up to do, to which Jack nodded, his expression a knowing and shameful one. He had then led Jacqueline away, he and her heading away from the Workshop, and Bernard and Elle heading towards it.

Jacqueline didn't need to ask what was going on, or why Elle and Bernard need to "catch up", because she already knew at least some of what had happened between the Head Elves. There was no need to make Jack feel even more like an asshole about it, in her opinion.

So she and him had gone to his house and hung around a little while. The meeting wasn't until noon, and it had been 11:15 at the time, so neither of them had been worried about being late.

After chatting some more and going up to see Jack's zoo of animals, Jacqueline and Jack had left to go visit Scott at the Elfirmiry. Jack still felt bad for being the cause of Scott's bruised back, so the visit had been awkward at first. Soon, however, he and Scott had merrily talked it up, and before they all realized it, it was 12:45 and they were very late to the meeting. So Jacqueline had grabbed a wheelchair for Scott to sit in, and despite all the protests Dr. Hismus made about Scott getting up to go to the meeting, they had all made it out of the Elfirmiry in one piece. Barely.

It was then that Elle and Bernard had shown up, presumably to also check up on Scott. Seeing their boss in the wheelchair and ready to go the meeting, the whole party had talked to sort some things out, and then they had teleported to Kris Kringle Castle. And now here they were. . .arriving in the wake of chaos.

"Please, calm down, everyone!" Mother Nature insisted, this time resisting the urge to slam her gavel, for it obviously wasn't going to be much help at this point. Her eyes were soon drawn to the new group coming in, and she felt a little better, for her heart seemed to relax its strained, rapid rhythm. But only just.

"Welcome, Santa," Mother Nature called out. Some of the large group had already noticed him and the others walking in, and had fallen silent. There were still a good few who hadn't taken the hint yet, for their voices now rang out quite clearly in the largely quiet hall.

"I don't care if a few goblins have turned into literate, mild-mannered mortals and learned to clog dance!" Faunin was shouting at Halloween and Skellington, who were both avoiding the goat man's murderous gaze as he stood up from his chair, hooves clomping. "My animals are very dear to me, as you both well know, so I simply will not stand to have my own son and grandson act like unfeeling, uncaring brutes and make light of these disappearances! _Shame_ on you, Hal. And shame on you too, Jack. I thought you were both better than this."

"Sorry, Father," Halloween mumbled, at the same moment Skellington said, "Sorry, Grandpapa."

Jack, Jacqueline, Scott, Elle and Bernard were not certain what to do. They continued to stand (Scott, of course, sitting in his wheelchair) staring at the whole group, as well as feeling and soaking in the tension radiating off of them. Elle actually had to shield her telepathic senses in order for the emotional pressure to not give her a crippling headache.

At last, Jack cleared his throat.

"Um, we made it," he said, for lack of a better greeting.

No one spoke for a moment, and even Faunin had fallen silent, chest heaving silently with anger, his eyes directed downward at the table. If he could have willed fire, the table would have been burning. Hal and Skellington, meanwhile, seemed to sink lower in their seats, wanting to hide from Faunin's penetrating gaze.

Finally, Mother Nature straightened up a little further, and said in the most calm voice she could muster, "Yes, we can see that, Jack. Please sit down, all of you. Perhaps now we can talk about things in a more peaceful, non-hostile way."

She shot a glare at Faunin as she said this, and the goat man noticed and turned his head away from her, feeling ashamed for his outburst.

"There is a lot we must discuss today," Mother Nature went on, "and fighting in this manner will not help us fight the Darkness. Now, if we are all at an understanding. . ."

She picked up her gavel again and raised it, letting it hang still in her grip for one, heart-throbbing moment before striking it upon the table.

"I now officially call this meeting of the Legendary Figures, their Legates, _and_ their families to session."

* * *

><p><strong>Well, you can obviously tell how tense everyone is! Phew, Council meetings are uber rough these days. :) <strong>

**Anyway, surprise! I got the first chapter done earlier than expected! :D I was going to work on other projects, which I actually have, but then I had some of chapter one written for this and it was calling me to finish it. And lo and behold, it was finished. So happy days for you all! :) **

**Now, let me see if I can work on a story other than this one for once! I need to write other things than just this, lol. :)**

** Til next time! (Be it another project or, eventually, this one :3)**


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